Link's Quest to Find Zelda
by TempleMaster17
Summary: This is an old fic of mine, the first of a three trilogy experiment with something other than humor. Zelda mysteriously vanishes, Link has to find her, blah blah blah.
1. A new Quest

OK! My first attempt at a fic with a ~real~ plot (lol).....I'm still adding chapters   
to my other fic "The Legend of Zelda: Sages of Stupidity" so those of you who might   
be keeping up with that have nothing to fear.....so here we go.......Link's Quest to Find Zelda!  
  
~Disclaimer: Same old, same old.......nothin new here but the fic.......I DO NOT FREAKING OWN   
ZELDA SO PLEASE REFRAIN FROM TAKING ME TO COURT!!!!!!!!!! Thank you and have a nice day~  
  
It was a cloudy day. Link hoped it wouldn't storm, not because he was afraid, but   
because he was right smack dab in the middle of Hyrule field. Everything was at least an   
hour's journey away, Lon Lon ranch being the closest.  
  
Link was seventeen now, for the second time. Zelda had sent him back after Ganondorf's   
demise to re-live his childhood. Well, he had certainly relived it, and all the while with   
Zelda's last words ringing in his ears: "When peace returns to Hyrule, it will be time to say   
goodbye..." He had only seen her once since then, back in her old chamber. After that, there   
had been no trace of her anywhere.  
  
It was just before the first raindrop hit him that he got the idea. He would search   
for Zelda, no matter how long it took, and find her. If that one drop had come a second sooner,   
he would have put the thought aside and headed for cover immediately.  
  
Only it hadn't. But when it did fall, it managed to get him right in the eye. Link   
cursed under his breath, but suddenly remembered the instrument Zelda had given him before her   
disappearance. For the second time, Link was entrusted with the fabled Ocarina of Time. He   
got it out and began playing the Song of Storms, hoping to at least stave this one off for a   
while longer.  
  
This done, he gently pressed Epona's sides with his feet, getting her going. Once   
they were at top speed, he started thinking again.  
  
************************************************************  
  
The jorney had taken just over an hour, with Link only stopping to let Epona grace   
the ground with some excess nutrients that she had not fully digested. It was just starting   
to rain again as Link knocked on the door of Malon's house.  
  
"Link!" Malon exclaimed as she opened the door and saw her visitor. "What are you   
doing way out here? You ususally only come up here about three times a year!"  
  
"Well," Link said, "I'm going on a new quest soon, and I might be a very long time.  
I thought it was probably best to say goodbye to all my friends before I went."  
  
"A new quest? What for?"  
  
"Well, you know how Zelda disappeared? I'm going to go and find her."  
  
"But how? She could be anywhere.....even another world!"  
  
"I've been to other worlds since Ganon's fall. I bet if I looked hard enough I could  
find even more gateways."  
  
"Link, there's something you should know. It may help you. You were not the last  
person to see Zelda. I think I was. She came to the ranch, and I thought I saw her, but   
there was a flash of light and she was gone. I thought I was just seeing things, because that   
was right after I was getting over that terrible disease."  
  
"But how do we find out how she did it?"  
  
"What about that old ghost hunter you used to tell me about? Do you think he may  
know some things? Or Saria! She's a sage too!"  
  
"Or Darunia, or Ruto, or Nabooru....or most likely even Rauru!! Thank you, Malon!  
You've been a huge help!" With that, he gave her a big hug, a kiss on the cheek, and burst  
out the door to collect his horse and charge off to his next stop: the forest.  
  
  
*************************************************************  
  
  
It was just as he was entering the Lost Woods that Link recalled the notes to the   
Minuet of Forest. He cursed at his bad timing, but decided to finish the journey on foot.  
  
After about twenty minutes of walking, Link finally finished climbing the stairs and  
entered into the Scared Forest Meadow, his and Saria's secret place. He saw her in her usual  
place on the tree stump, playing lively music. Instead of greeting her, he instead pulled out  
the ocarina and began playing along with that all too familiar song.  
  
Saria immediately stopped and looked up, obviously excited to see Link. Link, after  
giving her a hug, got straight to the point.  
  
"Saria, I need to ask you a very important question."  
  
"What is it?" she asked, mystified.  
  
"I need to know if you know how to open a gateway to other worlds."  
  
"I don't, I am only a young sage. I think Rauru or Impa knows, though. I also  
know that you can get into different worlds depending on your location in Hyrule. If you were  
to open a gateway in Zora's River, it may lead you to a completely different world than say,   
Lon Lon Ranch would."  
  
"Do you know where Rauru is right now?"  
  
"Yes. He is sitting on his fat old butt eating jelly doughnuts in that stuffy old   
Temple of Light of his, as always. I can send you there if you want. I at least know how   
to do THAT."  
  
"That would be great, Saria. Thank you so much for your help!"  
  
With that, Saria summoned a green capsule of light. Link stepped into it, and it  
immediately shut, transporting Link to the Temple of Light within the Sacred Realm.  
  
****************************************************************  
  
"Rauru?" Link called.  
  
"In here, Link! What brings you all the way out here to my humble dwelling?"  
  
Link looked around at the lavishly decorated, impossibly huge temple and decided  
that humble was hardly the word. He put that thought aside for now, however, and concentrated  
on getting some answers.  
  
"I need to know how to open gateways between worlds," Link informed Rauru as he entered  
the huge chamber that he was currently in.  
  
"Ahh. I see. Very hard magic, although I believe you are capeable. I don't teach this  
to just anyone, though. You still have to undergo some training.  
  
'Great' Link thought, 'just what I needed. More training!' Instead of saying this,  
however, he politely asked, "What is it I need to do?"  
  
"You must learn to clear your mind of all thoughts, so you are only concentrating on  
the gateway you are creating."  
  
"That's easy! How do you think I defeated Ganondorf, by letting my mind wander?   
Thinking of all the girls I could get after doing something like that? Heck no, chubs!"  
  
"You have a valid point...let's give it a shot then! This requires basic light  
summoning skills. I bet you could learn those patterns all in one day if you tried. Here's  
how the first one goes. After you clear your mind, focus only on a small ball of red light."  
  
"Why red?" Link interrupted.  
  
"Because red is the easiest for a beginner. The actual gateway will need white light,  
but that is the very hardest to summon. Now, once you picture the light in your mind, you must  
coax it out into reality. You may speak to it, trap it, fight it, whichever style suits you  
best. But you must do it all in your head. Once you have it out, you can work magic with it."  
  
"Okay...I'll give it a shot."  
  
He closed his eyes and worked on clearing his mind of everything that was or might have  
been a thought. Then he pictured a globe of red light. In his mind, he drew out his sword. To  
his surprise, the light took the form of a human, and drew a sword of its own. After a few   
moments, the battle commenced.  
  
Link would have been surprised at how different battling in his mind was if he hadn't  
temporarily banished his thoughts. He had unlimited strength, and could shrink or grow when   
it was necessary.   
  
But the light, which was out of his control, could do just the same, making the battle   
both easier and harder simultaniously, but in different respects.  
  
The battle ended when Link's sword passed through where the light-human's neck would be.  
While it passed right through, leaving no blood or scars, it was obvious that the thing no   
longer acted of its own accord, but of Link's.   
  
It took Link a while to realize this, but once he did, he had no problems making the   
ball of light in his mind a part of the real world.  
  
  
*~~* THE END OF PART ONE *~~*  
  
  
Coming up in Part Two: "Link ran out the door to the exact spot Malon had indicated. He cleared  
his mind and envisioned a white globe of light........." 


	2. The Gateway

So.....how was part one? If you review (PLEEZ PLEEZ REVIEW!!) tell me!! Heeeeere's  
part two: Gateway to (yet) Another World!  
Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaassssssssseeeeee review! Oh by the way.....I am using the  
exact same disclaimer as last time throughout this whole series so I don't have to keep  
writing it over and over and over and over and over and over and over and...well, you get  
the picture.  
  
[A/N: Paragraphs fixed in part 1 now, tho this one is bein a little unruly...wokin on it!]  
  
  
Link's Quest to Find Zelda: Part two- The Gateway  
  
"Good!" Rauru exclaimed. "Now, let's practice making the gateway out of red  
light.  
First, make it into a long rod of light." He nodded as Link obeyed. "Good. I see that  
you have figured out for yourself that you still have to envision it in your mind. The next  
step is to form a door with it.....but don't get cocky....this is the EASY part!"  
  
'EASY?!' Link thought, 'This is tough enough itself....what next?!'  
  
"Excellent work. Now is the hard part. You have to link your mind with  
someone  
else's in that world. For you that should be easy, considering Zelda is over there. Then  
all  
you have to do is keep the connection, open the door, and walk in."  
  
"Oh, that's all," Link commented with so much sarcasm you could chew on it.  
  
"The next easiest seems to be blue light. Try that."  
  
Link obeyed, banishing all thoughts once more, and envisioning a blue globe  
of light floating, just as he had done with the red. Once again, mind-Link drew its sword  
and got out its shield, while the bule light changed into something totally unexpected. A  
peahat?! Link almost lost the light because of a would-be thought. Peahats were  
common in Hyrule field, and were not hard to defeat. With Link's confidence the image  
of himself within his mind grew to twice its normal size. He realized just then that the  
thing fed off feelings. If he could try to be this confident ALL the time, he would be able  
to do so much more. This ALMOST in mind, he commenced the battle.  
  
The fight took surprisingly long, ending this time when mind-Link uttered  
only a single word. The surprise of this immediate submissiveness almost caused Link to  
lose it, but he caught himself at the last second. Once again he molded it into a rod,  
formed a door, and imagined what it would be like to link his mind with Zelda's.  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
By the end of the day, Link had repeated the process with green, purple,  
orange, indigo, and yellow light. Yellow was the second hardest, and had taken Link a  
whole hour just to draw into reality. From there it had resisted him as he tried to mold it,  
and Lnik nearly lost control of it more than three times. He had finally made it, though,  
and tomorrow they would work on connecting Link's mind to someone else's, and finally  
white light. After that, he could go to the ranch and follow Zelda, though one thing did  
confuse him. Malon had said she had vanished right after she saw her. The only sensible  
solution was that Malon had seen her right at the end of the lengthy process.  
  
'But who did Zelda link minds with?' he suddenly wondered. There were two  
possibilities for that one. Either she was the most powerful of the sages and did not need  
to connect to someone's mind, or she knew many many people from just as many worlds.   
Niether of them would have surprised Link at all. He then decided to pay the last of his  
visits and try to mooch some provisions off his old friends. First stop: Death Mountain.  
  
  
*************************************************************  
  
  
Getting there was easy. Link still remembered the Bolero of Fire quite  
clearly. It had been his favorite song that Zelda, with the guise of Shiek, had taught him.  
  
As he walked in the back of Darunia's chamber he tapped the huge goron's  
right shoulder. As Darunia turned right, Link dodged around his left side and before  
Darunia could say anything, whipped out the ocarina and had played Saria's song.  
  
Before the insane dance took him Darunia had the time to give Link a swift  
right hook, knocking him against the wall. It was apparent the Sage of Fire did not know  
his own strength. Link, however, got up unfazed, and proceeded to laugh his head off as  
Darunia danced and danced like a maniac, but the grin quickly faded as the dance ended,  
and he got right down to business. "Darunia. Tomorrow I am leaving this world in  
search of Princess Zelda. I came to say goodbye, because I may be gone a very long  
time."  
  
"I see. Surely you will take some of our finest green rocks with you?" he jested.  
  
"I would be glad to," Link replied with a smirk on his face, "but I wouldn't  
have anything to boil them in."  
  
"Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?! How silly of me.......well,  
goodbye to you then..........Brother."  
  
Link waved as he disappeared behind the statue in the chamber. Once he was  
out, he warped to the Lost Woods to ask Saria's aid in returning him to the Temple of  
Light. As soon as he landed the thought struck him that he could have easily asked the  
same of Darunia, but it was too late for that now. In a moment, he had explained to  
Saria. She nodded, and the next thing he knew he was face-to-face with Rauru once  
again.  
  
"We should rest. By tomorrow no doubt you will be running amok in another  
world," the old sage commented crankily.  
  
"Right," Link said, and headed off to where he guessed would be a bedroom.  
  
  
  
******************************************************************  
  
  
Link woke early the next morning to a horrible cutting noise. Or at least, what  
he thought was a cutting noise. Abruptly he realized that it was Rauru's snores, and  
laughed inwardly. He followed the noise to Rauru's chamber, and had to cover his ears  
the sound was so loud.  
  
"RAURU!!" Link screamed at the sleeping sage.  
  
"Wha-?" muttered the huge old man as he woke from his deep slumber.  
  
"I'm ready to start. I want to find Zelda as soon as possible. I am going to try  
the white light while you eat breakfast."  
  
"Ummmm........ok, go right ahead. Once you are done, and have the doorway  
constructed, clear your mind of everyone but me, and then we must share a thought.   
Then our minds will be linked."  
  
"And how the heck am I supposed to read your thoughts?!"  
  
"I think you should figure that one out on your own," Rauru commented.   
"Now, if you will kindly stand aside, I must eat my breakfast." He strode away, calling a  
"Good luck" over his shoulder as he went.  
  
Link began to clear his mind. The routine was so....well......routine now, that  
within moments a bright ball of white light, a little bigger than he had thought he  
summoned, floated in front of him. In his mind he drew out his Mirror Shield and Master  
Sword, though he had no idea why he could use that blade in his mind. Not that he had  
any other ideas right then, taking into account the banishment his thoughts had suffered  
only moments ago.  
  
Nothing could have prepared Link for what he saw the light turn into then.   
Slowly but surely it took on more and more features of a man on a horse, and even  
though the light was white, the horse appeared black, as did the armour the man was  
wearing. This was none other than the image of Link's archenemy Ganondorf.  
  
In his mind Link gasped, and he came closer than he had ever been to losing  
control. He barely managed to hold on, though, and was prepared to battle. Before the  
light-nemisis could react, Link had put a Light arrow directly in its face, and began  
hacking at it as soon as it fell to the ground. A stray thought almost popped up just then,  
but he surpressed it. A bystander right then would have seen only a teenager standing  
there with his eyes closed. If they could look into his mind, however....they would see a  
violently raging battle, some- times with Link appearing to have the upper hand, other  
times the light.  
  
Arrow after arrow smacked the light-Ganondorf, consistently full in the face.   
And every time he would fall off his horse, Link would hack at him with his sword a few  
times. Then Ganondorf would rise, send Link flying with a blast of energy, mount his  
horse, and charge. This would be followed by an arrow, and the whole tedious process  
began anew.  
  
That was when Link decided that a new strategy was required. As Ganondorf  
charged this time, he dliberately missed with the light arrow. Ganondorf, thinking he had  
finally won, grew bigger. However, he grew bigger not from true confidence, as would  
have aided him, but from cockiness, which would momentarily lead to his own downfall.   
As he rode close, Link hurled himself between the horses legs from the side, barely   
daring to believe it when he came out the other side untouched. That disbelief only  
lasted for a fraction of a second, and once it had passed Link sprang into the next part of  
his plan. He mounted the horse while it was at top speed, and stabbed light-Ganon  
between his shoulderblades. While not seeming to harm the light man, it did throw him  
off the horse. Link proceeded to jump down, letting the horse wander where it would.   
To his, well, what would have been surprise it stopped. He looked over to where  
Ganondorf was just gatting to his feet, now much smaller than normal size. Link  
immediatly began dashing towards him, light arrow nocked in his bow and ready to fire  
at any moment. As he ran, his light-enemy shrank and shrank, till it dwindled into  
nothing. Then the old ball of light was back, but there was a difference in it. Control of  
this light now belonged to Link.   
  
He had a great deal of trouble bringing it into reality, though, and even after  
that struggle the task of shaping it remained. He bent every last particle of his will he  
knew he posessed into drawing that light out into a bar, and even more than that to mold  
it into a door of solid light.  
  
After a good half hour of working the light, he was finally permitted to think  
again. He looked at the door of light he had just created, and the beauty of it took his  
breath away. 'I did THAT?!' he wondered inwardly.  
  
The door itself was large, so large it could fit through five copies of himself  
abreast, with a little room to spare. It was a good twelve feet tall by his estimation,  
enough for someone twice his own height to pass through without worrying about  
ducking their head. The face of the door it what was truly astounding. Around the edges  
was a pattern that alternated the insignia of all the sages, including one he did not  
recognize. 'That must be Zelda's,' he realized with a start. The inside of the door showed  
the legendary Master Sword, within the pedestal of time. It's blue hilt seemed to glow,  
and the sword itself was overridden by some kind of creeping plant, which meandered all  
over the sword in no particular pattern. At regular intervals, though, were red or yellow  
flowers.   
  
Link almost fell over when he saw a note, taped over the triforce insignia on  
the pedestal. It read:  
  
"Link: -he gasped as he read this; how could it be intended for him??-  
I knew you would be looking for me......one of these days......when you come  
through.....we have much to talk about......I am in Damon's Realm......please hurry,  
Link!!!  
  
-Zelda"  
  
The note itself seemed almost normal, but what of that desperate plea at the  
end? He decided to skip trying to link to Rauru's mind, and instead teleported to the Lost  
Woods. He hurried out of the Sacred Forest Meadow, with only a muttered goodbye to  
Saria over his shoulder. He climbed that all-too-familiar ladder, and raced across the top  
of the maze, finally exiting into the Lost Woods proper. He took a right, and found   
himself in the Kokiri Forest. 'Just the place I wanted to be,' he smiled. He jumped off the  
edge of that puny little cliff, and ran out the exit into the field. Whipping out his ocarina  
once more, he summoned Epona and took off, faster than he had known the horse could  
travel, towards Lon Lon Ranch.  
  
  
  
********************************************************************  
  
  
Epona must have sensed his desperation, because she made the trip in a record  
forty-five minutes. Link burst in the door of Malon's house, not bothering to knock. He  
found Malon eating lunch, but she stopped eating at the sight of him and smiled. That  
smile quickly faded as she realized what he had come for. "You need to know the spot  
where Zelda disappeared from, don't you?" she asked grimly.  
  
"Yes," Link answered.  
  
"It was right over there." She pointed to the northeast corner of the ranch.   
"Goodbye, Link."  
  
"Goodbye, Malon. I will be back, soon, I hope."  
  
Link ran out the door to the exact spot Malon had indicated. He cleared his  
mind and envisioned a white globe of light. When it appeared, it was once again a little  
bigger than he had intended. But nothing, not even his last battle, could have prepared  
him for what the light changed into this time. This would definately take a very long  
time.  
  
  
*~~* THE END OF PART TWO *~~*  
  
  
Coming up in Part Three: " 'Damon's Realm?! You must be crazy,' the strange beast  
snickered. 'Why, Damons Realm is so chock full of demons and monsters that nobody,  
not the strongest mage in all of Mekinelle, could survive for more than a week!' " 


	3. The Road to Damon's Realm

A mysterious voice: The third volume of Link's quest for Zelda is available now, if you  
call 1-900-555-LINK. You  
pay 20 easy installments of only $1,000,000 dollars each, making checks payable to  
TempleMaster14. No credit cards are accepted, and no refunds are provided. Thank  
you, and have a nice day!  
TempleMaster14: ........heeeey how did that get in here? Please ignore that little message,  
as volume 3 of Link's Quest to Find Zelda magically appears below. Enjoy!   
PLEEEEEEZ REVIEEEWW!!!!  
  
[A/N: I see the paragraphs are STILL messed up. That will be dealt with soon.]  
  
Part three: Mekinelle  
  
In front of Link, depicted in solid white light, stood Zelda. It was apparent that she was  
torn between warning Link not to come and begging him to come quicker. Warning won.   
She immediately started babbling on and on about how dangerous it was where she had  
gone. She told of huge beasts each the size of Ganon who ate men alive, and tiny insects  
that could kill a human in a single bite. There were also evil spirits which seemingly  
could not be defeated. Link would never have overcame this obstacle the light threw at  
him if he had not been totally ignoring her and focusing all his attention on what she  
looked like. He looked at her dress, shoes, hair, and.......the earrings! She still wore her  
earrings in the shape of the triforce! It all came rushing back to him. Ganondorf's last  
words, "As long as the triforce of power is in my hand...."  
  
If Ganondorf still had that triforce.....he must still have the triforce of courage! He  
clenched his right hand into a fist, the back of it facing outward, and sure enough a single  
triangle gleamed. "Zelda" stopped talking as quickly as she had begun, and all of the  
light's will power faded into Link's. He almost lost control with a would-be thought  
about how easy that had been, but caught himself just in time.  
  
Link then focused on bringing it into reality. After much ado, a shimmering ball of light  
was floating before him. Once again he focused his mind on it, willing it to grow longer  
and thinner. Slowly, ever so slowly, it stretched until Link was satisfied with the length;  
about thirty-three feet. He bent it twice, leaving two thirteen foot uprights and a seven  
foot crossbeam. The same image as before flowed over the door, first in one color, then  
adding another, then another and another. The darkest colors came last, and Link noticed  
a new note mysteriously awaited him. This time it read:  
  
"Link:  
This world will be very strange to you, as it was for me. There are creatures as you could  
not imagine, and rogue spirits defile the land with their very presence, let alone their  
deeds of evil. Be prepared, Hero of Time, and make haste!  
  
-Zelda"  
  
That in mind, Link thought what he supposed Zelda would be thinking right now; 'Hurry,  
Link!" Nothing happened. Just for laughs he tried 'Link is a stud-muffin,' which also had  
no effect. He tried 'When will Link get here,' 'I wonder what he looks like now,' and  
'WHERE IS LINK?!' but none of them worked. Out of pure frustration he thought, 'I can't  
do this!'  
  
The next thing he knew his mind was overrun by thoughts, only half of them his own.   
The piece of magical art that was the door opened, revealing only blackness.   
Remembering Zelda's note and that infernal title the Master Sword had given him [A/N:  
"Hero of Time, chosen by the Master Sword!" -Rauru....for those who were confused  
by that last remark.], he closed his eyes and leaped through.  
  
  
**************************************************************************  
*  
  
  
What Link saw next was hazy at first, as if he had just came around from being  
unconcious. Then everything became sharp and clear. Had he any knowledge of  
cameras, he would have thought he was dreaming and had just stepped into a living  
negative. Only he was not inverted. The grass under his feet was a bright magenta, and  
the sky was a vivid yellow, dotted here and there with black clouds.  
  
After getting over the shock of inverted colors, Link took stock of his surroundings. He  
was in a forest, the trees with mild lavender bark and light pink leaves. Above the trees  
seven huge white birds wheeled. They were each as tall as Link was, if not more; the  
largest were half his size again. As Link started to walk, he noticed they were  
moving with him. 'Are they just interested by a stranger, or should I have my bow  
handy?' he wondered. His mental question was quickly answered as five of them dived  
towards him.  
  
Link grimaced at the speed at which they plumetted; dropping faster than a bowling ball  
hurled downwards from an airplane. The first one was only a yard above his head by the  
time the thought had passed. At the very last second, the bird mere inches from his  
head, he jumped aside as quick as lightning. The bird impaled the ground rather than  
Link on it's razor sharp, foot long beak. The next two came at once. Link drew his new  
sword; crafted by Biggoron to match the master sword both in balance, sharpness, and  
beauty; and turned one edge of the deadly blade upwards. Taking a swift step back, he  
let the birds crash head-on into Demonsbane- that was what Biggoron had christened it-  
and almost wished he hadn't. Such largh beasts require equally large amounts of blood,  
and there was a good deal of that now, tainting the placid forest's floor. The next two had   
managed to pull out of their nose-dives and were flying at shocking speeds through the  
forest after Link. Once again he used their velocity against them, ducking nimbly behind  
a tree which shook just a second later from two large feathery masses crashing headlong  
into it, trapping themselves. Chuckling inwardly, he pressed on.  
  
  
  
**************************************************************************  
*  
  
  
After a few hours of aimless wandering, Link finally emerged from the forest. The last  
two birds had apparently decided that attacking Link was not worth their lives, and had  
flown off an hour previously. He noted that this part of the forest was on the top of a hill,  
and below him a city sprawled. The colors still had Link befuddled; a few things here  
were still the same as in Hyrule. The sun, foe example, was still yellow and gave off  
white light. The night sky was still a deep, dark blue. Bricks were normal, he realized,  
and his earlier encounter with the birds told him that blood was still red. He wondered  
what people here looked like. As much to answer that as to find food and shelter, Link  
dashed down the hill, not stopping until he reached the gates of the city. A tough looking  
guard challenged him, asking who he was and what business he had within. 'Good,' Link  
sighed, 'people here are just like in Hyrule.' He looked the guard right in the eye to  
answer, and gave a start. His eyes were yellow!  
  
That was the difference in people here, he realized. Eye color was inverted in humans,  
but that was the only difference. The man even spoke the same language he did. "I am  
Link; Hero of Time; defeater of Ganon. I come from the land of Hyrule."  
  
The guard's eyes widened at the mention of Hyrule. "Really? You're not the only one  
from that world who's come to this one. Seven years ago a young woman, said her name  
was Zelda, came through here. Stayed here, too, up until about a year ago. She brought  
new ideas to the town and to the land, and we of Cemor's Realm had six golden years of  
peace and prosperity. Then some young, insolent upstart from Damon's Realm came and  
stole her away, he did. Right from under our noses. Yes, I suppose it was a year ago  
today! But right before she was taken off, she said something. Something about a young  
man named Link. We all thought she was delusional; her face had a strange look about  
it, and right after she said it her mood changed and she was normal again. The very next  
night, she was gone without a trace. It all makes sense, now that you've come, Link."  
  
"What were the exact words she said, do you remember?"  
  
"Oh yes, very clearly. She said, 'The Hero of Time must come to rescue me, for I am  
going where no ordinary person from this realm can follow. Watch for a young man by  
the name of Link.' And then she was normal again."  
  
"I see. Do you have any food and water I can take on my way? I must set off  
immediately."  
  
"Yes. Wait here and I will bring you some."  
  
After about half an hour by Link's estimation, the guard returned holding two tiny bottles.   
One appeared to contain water, the other what looked like food. Link cocked an eyebrow  
at the seemingly meager portions; the guard caught the look and launched into an  
explanation. "These are magic bottles the princess gave us to give to you when you  
came. The bottle holding water has a good fifty gallons, and the one with food seventy  
pounds of the finest beef."  
  
Upon learning this Link's other eyebrow shot up to join the first in great surprise.   
Gratefully he took the two miniscule bottles, each feather light, and hooked them on his  
belt. He was in such a hurry that he forgot to ask directions. He looked over his shoulder  
and saw the guard pointing east. Link changed his course to match the guard's hand, and  
picked up his pace to a swift lope.  
  
  
**************************************************************************  
  
  
The journey so far had been a boring one; no battles or contact with intelligent life. It  
had been a day and a night since he had left the town gates. Link was still sleeping; it  
was still very early in the morning. So he slept on, blissfully unaware of the pair of eyes  
that watched his every movement from the bushes. Or at least, that is what the creature  
watching Link thought....  
  
An instant later the Hero of Time had his bow out, arrow nocked and string drawn. If he  
had to be the Hero of Time he might as well live up to the title. "If you can understand  
me," he said slowly, "come out of those bushes. One wrong move and you'll get to meet  
this arrow up close and personal." As slowly as he had spoken the beast complied, never  
for an instant taking his eyes off the young hero.  
  
"My road this is," it promptly informed him, "and it is closed due to the evil in Damon's  
Realm; for that is where it leads."  
  
"Good. Then I am going the right way. Please allow me to pass. If you do I will reward  
you at a later time."  
  
The thing considered for a moment, then exploded, "Damon's Realm?! You must be  
crazy," the strange beast snickered. "Why, Damon's Realm is so chock full of demons  
and monsters that nobody, not the strongest mage in all of Mekinelle, could survive more  
than a week!" He continued to cackle noisily, then met Link's eyes again.He jumped, as  
if noticing them for the first time. "Your eyes," he said, fear entering his own.   
They...how can that be? They're blue! You aren't from around here, are you? No, no you  
can't be.... Be gone with you!"  
  
With that he took off screaming something about the world coming to an end. 'Good,'  
Link thought. 'Now I can keep going.' With a light step he set out once more. He felt  
odd, though, and glanced over his shoulder. His heart skipped a beat as he saw another  
note nailed to a nearby tree.  
  
*~~* THE END OF PART THREE AND THE FIRST TRILOGY *~~*  
  
[A/N: The next trilogy will appear as a new fanfic rather than three more chapters and  
will be titled "Link's Quest to Find Zelda: Rescue from the Realm" or something along  
those lines. The summary will tell that it is the next trilogy if that title won't fit.]  
  
Coming up in Part Four: "What seemed like just a shiver at first began to take form just  
behind Link, and as he turned aound he was face-to-face with a spirit. Link didn't need to  
ask to know that it meant him harm. But how could he overcome it?" 


End file.
